Lewis and AB0 blood group-phenotypes in periodontitis, cardiovascular disease, obesity and stroke

The AB0 blood group has been linked to ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and periodontal disease, while the Lewis blood group has been linked to ischaemic heart diseaseand obesity, all of which have been associated with periodontitis. AB0 or Lewis blood group phenotypemay therefore constitute common hereditary components predisposing to these disorders. In this study, we investigated if blood group phenotypeassociated with periodontitis in a subpopulation consisting of 702 participants from a Danish cross-sectional cohort and, secondarily, attempted to confirm their association with hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and obesity. No significant association between blood group phenotypeand periodontitis was detected, nor were previously reported associations between blood group phenotypeand hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and obesity confirmed. This may, at least partly, be attributed to differences in study type, outcome definitions, cohort sizes, and population attributable factors. However, our results suggested a strong association between self-reported stroke and the Lewis (a−b−) phenotype(P = 0.0002, OR: 22.28; CI 95: 4.72–131.63).